Creative Australia acknowledges the tragic passing of Emeritus Professor Brenda Walker, novelist, essayist, editor, professor of literature, and much-loved former Board member and peer.
Born in Grafton, New South Wales in 1957, Brenda gained a PhD in English at the Australian National University, before moving to Perth to take up a position at the University of Western Australia. It was here that she would supervise the many research students who went on to academic and publishing success, rising to the position of Winthrop Chair in English and Cultural Studies. She also had stints as a visiting fellow at Stanford University and the University of Virginia, and worked as a mentor at Varuna, The Writers’ House, in Katoomba.
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Brenda was best known to Australian audiences as the award-winning writer of novels Crush, One More River, Poe’s Cat and The Wing of Night, the latter earning her the Asher Award, the Nita Kibble Literary Award, and a shortlisting for both the Miles Franklin Award and the Christina Stead prize at the New South Wales Premier’s Literary Awards. Brenda also won a prestigious O. Henry Prize (USA) in 2018 and her fiction was published in the UK, Canada, the US and Italy. In 2016-2017 she was chair of the judging panel of the national Stella Prize for women’s writing.
In Reading by Moonlight, Brenda described the five stages of her treatment for breast cancer and how different authors helped her through her recovery. This work gained her another Nita Kibble Literary Award and a Victorian Premier’s Literary Award [for Nonfiction].
Described by New York literary scholar Nicholas Birns as ‘one the three leading prose stylists working in Australia today’, Brenda brought her experience as a highly-acclaimed novelist and professor of literature and her deep knowledge of the written word to serve on the Literature Board of the Australia Council for the Arts between 2012 and 2014 and also acted as a peer advisor. Brenda also represented Australia at overseas literary festivals, including in Ubud, Bali and in Cheltenham in the UK.
Creative Australia’s Head of Literature Wenona Byrne said:
“Brenda Walker was a brilliant writer, editor, professor, and supporter of Australian literature who will be fondly remembered at Creative Australia (formerly the Australia Council for the Arts) and beyond as someone who made a telling difference, inspiring and educating future writers, and always acting with exceptional grace and integrity. We extend our heartfelt sympathies to her family, friends and the literary community.”
Vale
Professor Brenda Walker
1957 – 2024